All I Want for Christmas Is you DEAD
by bigbangtheoryk8
Summary: When Reid is shot and goes missing, can the team save him from the blood thirsty psychopath out for revenge before it's too late? What does this UNSUB want and why is she so obsessed with Reid? T because I'm paranoid
1. Shot in the Dark

Dr. Spencer Reid hurried home as fast as he could, his fists shoved in his coat pockets and his entire body shivering. He liked winter- shivering was a lot better than sweating- but it was times like this he wished he lived somewhere like Florida or California. Or at least had a car. Reid fumbled for his keys and sighed, rubbing his hands together as soon as he got inside his apartment building. As he began to climb the stairs, the lights went out. That was odd. Maybe around Christmas people were using up more electricity than usual but he couldn't remember the last time the power went out for the entire building. Perhaps there was a problem with the electrical line, he mused as he reached his apartment, pulling out his keys again. Upon entering, Reid hurriedly went to get his gun. He would never admit it, but after all those years of chasing after murderers and keeping calm at the gruesome, bloody scenes, Reid was absolutely terrified of the dark. He remembered Gandalf's words from Lord of the Rings, "And in the darkness, bind them." Bad things happened in the dark. Reid preferred daylight much better. He went to look for his flashlight and cursed, realizing it had no batteries. He decided to invite the team over, since he didn't want to be alone and had not candles. He figured Garcia would and reached in his back pockets for his phone. As he pulled it out, he couldn't help but remember the fresh batteries he had put in his flashlight a week ago. They couldn't have run out that quickly. Especially since he hadn't used his flashlight at all. Reid shrugged it off, knowing it would freak him out too much to dwell on it and dialed Garcia's number. It was getting cold and he wished desperately that the electricity would turn back on. The phone rang a couple of times until Garcia.

"Penelope Garcia, representing the lollipop guild. How may I help you?"

Reid chuckled. "Hey, Garcia. It's Reid."

"I know," She answered brightly. "Remember that thing they came up with about ten years ago called 'caller ID'?"

"1969, Garcia." Reid said.

"What?"

"Caller ID. It was first used in 1969 but I have no idea who thought of it first." Reid said, smirking.

"Why do you know that?" Garcia asked, sounding impressed.

"What, am I supposed to fill my head with useful trivia?" Reid said sarcastically. "Speaking of which, did you know that Norwegian scientists have hypothesized Rudolph's red nose being a result of severe respiratory problems?"

"Oh good, Christmas trivia. Time to get in the spirit!"Garcia laughed.

Reid was about to bring up the first artificial Christmas tree when he shivered and remembered why he had called Garcia in the first place. "Well anyway, the reason I called is because the power went out in my apartment building and I was wondering if you had any-" Reid froze and the grin slid off his face. There was someone in his apartment. Someone was walking into his living room. Someone was cocking a gun. Reid stood there, his gun raised at the shadow of a person standing in the corner. He was silent for a long time and Garcia started to worry. "Any what?" she asked. No answer.

"Reid? You there?" She brought the phone away from her ear to see if the line had disconnected, but it hadn't. She started to panic. "Reid? Spencer! Answer me! Can you hear me? Are you alright? Reid!" Garcia had to calm her hysterics when she heard the all too familiar sound of a gunshot just before Reid hung up. She continued to shout his name into the phone, knowing that he couldn't hear her.

She put the phone down and thought for a minute. _Oh god, oh god, oh god. _Was all she could think. She had to clear her head. Reid needed help and she had to call someone to protect her baby. And Garcia knew exactly who to call. She dialed and waited impatiently for Morgan to pick up.

"What's up, baby girl?" He was happy that she had called him because he was so bored and needed to hear her bright, bubbly voice. None such tone awaited him. Only a panicked and shaking voice that said,

"Derek, you need to get over to Reid's now! He's in trouble. He just called me and then I heard a gunshot and he said that the power was out and please protect my baby." Garcia choked out the last few words on a sob leaving Morgan confused and worried. When he finally processed what Garcia had said, he jumped up and ran out the door.

This couldn't be happening. Not so close to the holidays. What a great freaking present. He tried to think about the best case scenario as he drove to Reid's apartment like a mad man, listening to Garcia's panicked sobs and telling her to breathe. Best case scenario: Reid had accidently let his gun go off because of his fear of the dark. Yeah, the team knew about it. It was obvious. Worst case scenario: Reid was dead. He tried not to think about that one and focus on the other scenarios as he arrived at Reid's apartment building and ran inside as another resident was walking out. Reid could have shot his attacker, maybe killing him. Or he might have been shot with a non fatal blow, allowing himself to be taken by whoever was in his apartment.

Morgan raced up the stairs two at a time and as he reached the floor Reid's apartment was one, he had a hunch he knew which one it was. He hoped it was wrong, but then Garcia confirmed his suspicions and, taking a deep breath, Morgan pushed open the already slightly ajar door and took a look around. Even in the dark, what he saw made him cringe.

"Garcia, call Hotch. We got a crime scene" He said.


	2. Holiday Greetings

Hotch groaned as his phone rang and rolled over, pulling a pillow up over his head to block out the sound. It wasn't late and he knew the rest of his team liked to stay up late doing god know what until they passed out, but he had a son and a job. He had to be more responsible. JJ at least understood, having a son herself. Jack wouldn't go to sleep unless Aaron did, thus making Hotch fast asleep at 11:00 pm, the time a middle schooler would go to bed. He had been sleeping for a couple hours and was just reaching the REM cycle when Garcia's call woke him up.

The phone rang again and Hotch thought wearily that it might be important, but as he finally pulled himself up and reached for the phone, it stopped.

_Oh well, _Hotch thought, settling back down and falling asleep again. _It can wait 'til morning. _If only he had known what Garcia was calling about . . .

Hotch was woken up again an hour later by a pounding on the front door. Cursing whomever had woken him and his son up at midnight, Hotch got up again and walked into the living room. He saw Jack come in, rubbing his eyes and sighed. _This better be important_. The pounding grew louder and more frantic. Hotch opened the door, squinting at the light from the hallway, to see Garcia, fist still in the air.

Suddenly, Hotch was ambushed by a wave of blond hair and glitter and there were arms around his neck and Garcia was squeezing the daylights out of him.

"Garcia. . . ?" Hotch said, taken aback. He knew Garcia loved hugs and affection and all that crap, but she never hugged Hotch. She knew he hated that. Maybe it was important.

"Thank god you're okay." Garcia said, with a slight emphasis on "you're".

"Garcia, get off me." Hotch said, trying to sound impatient to mask the worry in his voice. Garcia drew back, apologizing. Hotch took a good look at her to profile her. She had mascara running down her face and red eyes. Crying. Her emphasis on 'you're' suggested someone was missing or dead. A member of the team. _Oh no, _Hotch thought. _Great. What a wonderful Christmas gift. Please don't let them be dead. _"Garcia, who is it?"

"What?" Garcia asked, biting her trembling lip.

"A member of the team is in danger-"

"Don't profile me." Garcia snapped.

"Please, Garcia," Hotch said. "Who?"

Garcia finally broke down and sobbed, "Reid!"

Hotch's eyes widened and he rushed to his room to get dressed. He ran out and told Jack to call Beth to take care of him. Jack nodded wide eyed. Hotch turned to Garcia as he put another gun in his ankle holster. "Let's go."

He followed Garcia to her flashy red convertible and Hotch jumped in the driver's seat. He had more composure than Garcia and it was a wonder she had made it to his apartment without getting into an accident. Hotch hid his worry behind his mask of eagle like aloofness. He wasn't doing a very good job.

"Hotch, you do realize you are going fifty miles above the speed limit, don't you?" Garcia asked nervously. Hotch took his foot off the gas a little. "Why are you slowing down?!" Garcia yelled and Hotch had to chuckle. When they reached Reid's apartment building, Hotch didn't bother opening the car door and Garcia took the keys as he jumped out. The door to the building was open and a CSI team was rushing in in front of them. As they climbed the stairs, Hotch's cell phone rang.

"Agent Hotchner." Hotch said as he answered.

"Hey, Aaron. It's Beth."

"Oh Beth, hey sorry." Hotch said. He stopped for a second and Garcia nudged him up the stairs.

"Um, Aaron, why was I called to take care of Jack in the middle of the night?"  
"Oh, are you not back from New York for Christmas vacation?"  
"No, I am, but I'm a little worried. What's going on, Aaron?" Beth asked. Hotch could hear Jack watching tv and was relieved that he wasn't alone.

"One of my agents is in trouble." Hotch said, realizing he had never asked if Reid was alive. It should have been the first question out of his mouth.

"Oh. . ." Beth was silent for a minute. "Who?"

Hotch heard Jack yell, "Spencer!"

"Reid?" Beth asked.

Hotch nodded, realizing she couldn't hear him. "Yeah. Listen I gotta go."

"Good luck." Beth said before Hotch hung up.

He reached Reid's apartment and saw Morgan with his arms crossed over his chest, his eyes closed and he was breathing heavily as if he was about to hyperventilate.

"Morgan." Hotch said and the agent opened his eyes and looked at the Unit Chief. "How bad is it?"

Morgan took a breath, motioning for Hotch to follow. Garcia walked up to the room, but Morgan turned and said, "Maybe you shouldn't see this, Baby Girl." Garcia ignored him and opened the door only to immediately turn around, her hand over her mouth. Morgan put his hand on her back and held a bottle of water out to her. Garcia pushed him away.

"I'm okay, Derek."

"Garcia, you don't have to see this." Hotch said comfortingly.

"I'm fine." Garcia said and she turned back to go into the apartment. Hotch took a good look and felt as sick as Garcia looked. On the wall were the words , "Merry Xmas" written clumsily in blood. Reid's blood.


	3. Psycho

Hotch swore quietly under his breath. Then turned to Morgan. "No body?"

Morgan shook his head, his eyes still transfixed on the gruesome message. "No, until we find one, we have reason to believe he is alive." Hotch and Garcia sighed in relief. They had both been expecting the worst.

The three people stood there, looking around. Garcia was the first one to speak up, "So what happened here?" She asked, clearly thinking as a profiler to go through the events leading up to the scene.

**Two hours earlier**

Reid whirled around and hung up as the sound of a gunshot filled the darkened apartment. Reid was unable to pull the trigger and he fell, dropping his gun to grab at the wound on his stomach. The shooter must be a really terrible shot or had wanted him alive. He gasped for breath as he looked at the blood on his fingers, his eyes widening as his brain slowly comprehended what had happened. He had been shot! Not in the leg or arm this time, in the stomach. He started to feel woozy. Reid prayed to god the bullet had not punctured his aorta, then chuckled weakly at his wish. Why didn't he wish to be rescued by his team before this UNSUB could kill him? He wasn't thinking straight.

Reid saw the shadowy figure approach him and kneel down. He saw bushy, brown, and curly hair surrounding a darkened face. A girl. Reid groaned. He had been taken down by a girl. Well, the girls he worked with were tougher than him, why shouldn't every other girl on the planet be?

The girl grinned maniacally and the moonlight drifting through the window caught the mad glint in her eyes as she reached two fingers into his wound, then stood up to stroke the wall, making letters with his own blood. Reid tried to see what she was writing, but through the darkness and his drowsiness he could only make out the letter, "M". The girl wrote quickly and at one point, she dug her fingers into Reid's wound so hard that he yelped. "Shut up." The girl said. After the fifth or so letter, darkness clouded even the moonlit parts of Reid's vision and he remembered no more of that evening.

The UNSUB turned around as she finished her message and saw that Dr. Reid had passed out. A member of his team of somebody would come by soon and she had to get out of there. The girl picked him up and draped him over her shoulders thanking the lord for her uncanny strength and the fact that Dr. Reid was extremely light. She put him in the trunk of her Jetti and drove off as Agent Morgan jumped out of his car and ran into the building. _Too late, _she thought as she drove off, laughing.

Reid looked around. There was nothing. Just blackness all around him except for a figure before him sitting on the ground, knees brought up to his chest, elbows resting on knees, hands pressed together, and head leaning on hands. It looked as if the figure was praying. Then suddenly, he recognized him. "Tobias Hankel?" He breathed. Tobias looked up at him in shock.

"Wha- What are you doing here?" He asked, guilt and relief flooding into his soft voice.

Reid realized that Tobias had never found out his name. "Dr. Spencer Reid." Reid said, giving a small wave. Tobias stared up at him. Reid shoved his hands in his pockets and looked around again. "Where are we?" He asked.

Tobias shrugged. "It must be some kind of limbo between heaven and earth. Or hell and earth. I don't see why I deserve to go to heaven after what I've done."

Reid sat down in front of Tobias and crossed his legs. "It wasn't your fault. It was your father and Raphael. You saved my life." Reid gave a small smile and arched his eyebrows.

Tobias shook his head. "It wasn't my father and there is no way an archangel would grace my presence. It was me. It was all me. I blamed it on my father, I blamed it on God. But it was me." Tobias was near tears. "I committed those murders. I tortured you. I got you addicted to Dilaudid. I'm glad you killed me." Tobias broke down and sobbed into his hands.

"I'm not." Reid said. "We could've gotten you the help you needed."

"I was making you dig your own grave." Tobias sobbed.

"No you weren't-"

"Yes, I was! It wasn't my father. It was me. . . I remember when I was little. Before my mom left. . . My best friend and I watched the movie Psycho."

"I've never seen that movie." Reid said. He felt a bit socially awkward. Everyone had seen that movie. Everyone except Reid.

Tobias gave him a funny look. "Well, it's a movie about a man named Norman Bates. He has a roadside motel that he has run with his mother since his father took off. One day, a girl named Maroon Crane steals $40,000 from a client of her boss' and when running away she comes across his motel. That night, she is murdered in her shower and they say it's Norman Bates' mother. But it is then found out Norman Bates' mother has been dead for ten years. By the end, we find out Norman Bates killed his mother and his brain cannot handle the moral contradiction so he pretends to be his mother to keep her alive and kills people pretending to be her. He dug up her dead body and hid it in the cellar. . . Sound familiar?"

Reid was silent for a minute. He thought about what Tobias had said. It was eerily similar to Psycho.

"Tobias, it is a real mental disease. You couldn't help it. It wasn't your fault. You were mentally unstable. My mother is like that. Maybe not extreme like yours and she doesn't have multiple personalities, but she's sick and needs help. It's not like she can help it. She'd forget to eat if she wasn't properly medicated and supervised. I don't blame you."

"But even when I was myself. . . " Tobias took a deep breath and stopped crying. "Look, I'm sorry about getting you on dilaudid."

Reid shrugged. "It helped."

Tobias chuckled weakly and leaned back to stare at the darkness. "It sure did." He said. "It sure did."

"Oh, Dr. Reid!" A high pitched voice singsonged. Reid pulled himself out of the dark and sluggishly opened his eyes and they widened in fear when he saw the girl who had shot him and what she was holding. "You know, it occurs to me that I never told you my name. I'm Jenny." Reid groaned. If she told him her name then that meant she didn't intend on him living. He didn't ponder on that long when his brain finally processed that Jenny was holding a skeleton. A real skeleton. Reid squinted. He could tell it was a male by the heart shape of the pelvis. Jenny saw him eying it. "Oh, you must recognize this guy." It took all of Reid's strength to shake his head 'no'. "Really?" Jenny laughed. "It's your old friend, Tobias Hankel. Or Charles. I don't know. One of the Hankels." Jenny grinned and it didn't take a profiler to tell she was insane.

Jenny climbed down into the ditch, carrying the skeleton. Reid had just been talking to Tobias Hankel and now he was staring at the lifeless bones of the man who had tortured him, drugged him, and saved his life whom he had eventually killed. Those empty holes had once been Tobias' soft, scared eyes.

Jenny took the bone arm and lifted Reid's head to put the arm around his shoulders. Reid tried to move away, but his body was so numb and weak. He fell back into unconsciousness surrounded by Psychos.


	4. Christmas Wish

It was four in the morning when the rest of the team stumbled wearily into the conference room. Blake had bags under her eyes, Rossi was sleepily cursing in Italian, and JJ was asleep on her feet. None of the other three members of the team wanted to explain what was happening again, but they hoped to find Reid as quickly as possible.

"Why are we here, Aaron?" Rossi asked tiredly. It was their day off and they had all gone to sleep only a couple of hours before the all too familiar sound of their cell phones ringing disturbed their plans to sleep in. It had to be important, but as none of them were morning people, they could only be annoyed at the moment.

"You might want to sit down." Hotch said, trying to keep his composure. "All of you." As if on command, the entire team sat at once, looking up at Hotch expectantly. Then, JJ started to glance around the room. There was an empty chair.

"Hey, where's Spence?" JJ asked. Sure, they had been called in on their day off, but Reid wouldn't come in later than them unless something was going on. Not to mention the fact that they shouldn't be in work today.

Garcia bit her lip so hard she feared it would bleed. Morgan clenched his fists and gritted his teeth. You would have to know Hotch to see the anger and worry in his eyes. Rossi noticed this.

"Aaron. . . What happened to him?" He asked quietly. He didn't ask if Reid was alright. He knew the answer. Hotch stiffened even more so.

Garcia answered with a shaking voice. "Last night, I got a call from Reid and he said the power went out in his building and was about to ask me for something then just stopped midsentence and he wouldn't answer me when I asked if he was alright. . . . And then I heard a gunshot and he hung up." She explained quickly, not wanting to waste any time. "I called Morgan and when he got there. . . " Garcia couldn't go on. The scene had made her positutely absotively sick.

Morgan took over, his arm around Garcia's shoulders. "When I got there, Reid was gone. The door was open and the wall had writing in blood on it."

There was silence for a minute. Then, Blake spoke up quietly. "What did it say?" She asked, not really wanting to know the answer. Hotch pulled a crime scene photo out of the file in front of him and handed it to JJ, who was in between Blake and Rossi. JJ looked at the message and cringed. That was her friend's . . . no, her _brother's_ blood smeared on the wall in a sickening, crimson holiday greeting with red running from the letters collecting in small pools in the crevice between the wall and the floor. How much blood did Reid have left? Surely after this he couldn't live loosing that much blood. If they didn't find him soon. . .

JJ set the picture face down on the table. She could only imagine what it was like to see this first hand. She tried to wrap her mind around it. Spence was missing. He had been shot in his own apartment. He was missing and probably dying.

JJ put her head in her hands. How had this happened? How had any of them let this happen? Why hadn't Morgan shown up sooner? How did this bastard get into Reid's apartment? Who would want to hurt him? What would they do if he died?

"JJ?" Blake asked gently, her hand on the younger agent's shoulder.

"I'm fine." JJ sat up. "Let's just focus on finding Spence."

Rossi had been silent but now cleared his throat and said, "Have you tried calling him?"

The team stared at him. "Was his cell phone at his apartment?" Rossi questioned.

Hotch shook his head. "We didn't find it."

"Then maybe the UNSUB has it." Rossi reasoned. "Even if it's broken it's still the only lead we have."

Hotch could have kicked himself for not thinking of that and thanked god that Rossi had. "Garcia, work on tracking Reid's phone." Hotch said. Garcia dashed off to her lair. Hotch pulled out his phone and dialed Reid's cell. It rang a couple of times and he put it on speaker. The other team members leaned in breathlessly. After what seemed like an eternity, the phone was answered.

"Dr. Reid's phone." It was a girl's voice. A girl had attacked Reid. Hotch looked around at his shocked team members with expressions that mirrored his own.

"It's a woman?" Blake whispered. They were all remembering Diane Turner. She had ruined Reid's life. They remembered thinking she was a man. Reid had eventually figured out that she wasn't by the medium of an angry message on a picture of Maeve.

"Yes, I am a woman, Agent Blake. And when you are using pronouns you might want to consider gender instead of referring to me as 'it'. It's insulting, Agent Blake." The voice said. How did she know Blake's name?  
"Who are you?" Hotch asked.

"My name is Jenny, Hotch. I am the girl who is going to watch Dr. Reid die slowly and painfully at my hand." Jenny's voice was high, wistful, and singsony. She certainly sounded like a psychopath.

"Don't kill him. You will regret it." Hotch said using his most menacing and venomous voice. Jenny simply giggled.

"What do you want? We can resolve this if you let Reid go. What do you want?" Hotch asked.

Jenny's all too calm demeanor was abandoned and she exploded. "I WANT HIM DEAD! THAT'S WHAT I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS! I -WANT-HIM-**DEAD**! WHY CAN'T I JUST HAVE THAT?!" Jenny choked on a sob. "The bastard ruined my life. He destroyed the only thing I love. Him and that bitch. . . " Jenny was sobbing hysterically and the team couldn't make out anything more. Finally, she took a deep breath and regained her creepy composure. "Now I'm going watching him die. And I couldn't be happier."

Suddenly, JJ's cell phone rang.

"You should probably get that, JJ." Jenny said. How did she know JJ's nickname? Only her friends called her JJ. "It might be important." And with that, Jenny hung up and crushed the phone under her foot. She knew they were tracking the phone. She put her note underneath the remains of the cell. It would lead them to her empty house.

"Agent Jareau." JJ answered her phone and her eyes widened. "Are you sure? Okay, thank you." She hung up and turned to face the team. "That was Detective Farraday of the local P.D. in Atlanta, Georgia."

Hotch stiffened at the mention of Atlanta. He thought back to that day they had found Reid digging his own grave with a broken foot and a dead serial killer.

_Reid looked up as the team approached him, his mouth open as if it took considerable effort just to lift his head._

_ Hotch holstered his gun. Hankel was dead. Reid had killed him himself. _

_ "Reid." Hotch said, pulling Reid up by his arm. Reid looked dazed. He stared around at the team as if he wasn't sure they were really there. He stumbled slightly, but Hotch was supporting him, still gripping his arm. Reid looked at him and reached out his shaky hands._

_ "Are you alright?"It was a stupid question. Of course Reid wasn't alright, but Hotch wanted Reid to say he was. To amaze the team once again and recover just like that. _

_ Reid didn't answer Hotch's question. His big brown eyes stared into Hotch's tough dark ones and made his heart twist. Reid's soft voice filled the silent graveyard as he said, "I knew you'd understand." His voice broke as he weakly threw his skinny arms around Hotch's neck. Hotch was surprised for a second, then wrapped a supporting arm around Reid's warm and trembling form and patted his back comfortingly. He was so glad that Reid was alive and back with his family, safe. Safe. They would make sure of it._

Hotch shuddered thinking about it. He hated seeing Reid so weak and vulnerable. The entire team did. Hotch had ridden along in the ambulance. Half way through the ride, the initial shock and euphoria of being rescued wore off and Reid tried to escape the gurney, bucking his hips and sobbing as he started having a panic attack. Hotch had put his hand on Reid's shoulder and told him to calm down. He was safe. Reid had relaxed and held onto Hotch's hand like it was a lifeline all the way to the hospital.

"Atlanta?" Morgan growled. He was clearly thinking about that night too.

_Tears prickled at Morgan's eyes as he watched Hotch let go of Reid. His best friend stood looking expectantly at JJ. She ran forward and threw her arms around him, almost knocking him over._

_ "I am so sorry." She cried._

_ "It's alright." Came Reid's voice, lacking all bitterness, contempt, hate, blame that Morgan had felt_. _Instead, it was full of relief, compassion, and forgiveness. Morgan realized if Reid didn't blame JJ, then he shouldn't either. Reid was the one most affected by her actions. "It wasn't your fault." It wasn't. It wasn't JJ's fault. Reid had told her to split up. Tobias had kidnapped Reid. It wasn't JJ's fault._

_ JJ broke away and as she walked past Morgan, wiping her eyes, he gave her a slight nod to let her know he forgave her. He was just glad his boy was home safe. _

JJ nodded, bringing Hotch and Morgan back from their flashbacks. "There was a robbery. A corpse was stolen."

"Why were you called about it?" Blake asked, noticing the unease on her colleagues' faces.

"Mostly out of courtesy. Detective Farraday just thought I would want to know seeing as how the corpse was that of Tobias Hankel." JJ spat out the name as if it was poison.

"Who?" Blake looked at the only other person not looking murderous, Rossi, who looked equally confused.

Hotch was about to answer when Garcia ran in, breathing heavily from excitement. "I managed to get a location on Reid's phone before it turned off or broke or something. I sent the address to your phones so. . . I guess I have no reason to be in here." Garcia backed out of the room yelling, "Go get my baby back home." And with that she turned on her heels and ran back to her lair.

"Thanks, baby girl." Morgan called after her as he pulled out his phone and dashed out the door with the rest of the team on his heels.

They reached their destination in twenty minutes. It was a small house surrounded by others just like it and was mint green. It looked homey.

Morgan wasted no time as he kicked the door open yelling, "FBI!"

The house was completely empty, except for a cracked and broken cell phone. There were scuff marks on the floor hardwood floors and nails in the mustard colored walls that suggested someone had once lived there. But now it was abandoned, sad and lonely, with nothing but a broken cell phone on the floor. There was something underneath . . .

Hotch was the first to notice and he picked up a piece of paper while the rest of his team searched the room, yelling, "Clear."

"Hotch, what is that?" Morgan asked.

Hotch read aloud, "Nice try, agents. You didn't think I was that dumb, did you? Well since I am a nice person I will give you a hint-"

"Nice?" Morgan scoffed. It was obvious he was about to let his temper get the best of him so Hotch quickly continued reading. "Up from opening Hairspray. Get some gas and take a break at the house named after the Christmasy Queen."

JJ stared out the window, not really seeing the backyard and houses behind it. She imagined Spence dying all alone, or worse with a psychopath who had shot him. "Dammit, Spence. Where are you?" 


	5. Ghost of Lovers Past

Reid lay in the ditch and groaned. It hurt and it wasn't exactly fun to watch himself bleed to death. He had been in many a pickle before, but the team always rescued him. They would come. He trusted that. They came to rescue him from Tobias Hankel, Morgan had saved him from Corey, Hotch had discreetly given Reid his gun to kill Phillip Dowd, and they had all been there for him when he needed their help finding Maeve. Maeve. . .

Reid pushed her from his thoughts and reflected on the day he had accidently gotten exposed to a deadly strain of anthrax.

_As Morgan answered his phone, Reid pulled out his gun and headed towards the house to make sure it was safe. Morgan didn't notice. Reid wandered into the house, opening a sliding glass door to what looked like a laboratory. As he walked in, Reid looked around, taking in everything. His eyes widened as he glimpsed a broken vial with contents spilling out. Anthrax. There was anthrax exposed in this room. Reid heard Morgan calling his name. He couldn't risk Morgan's life, too. Reid ran to the door as Morgan ran up._

_ "Morgan, g-get back!" Reid yelled, pulling the door closed. "Get back! Get out of here!"_

_ "Reid what are you doing?" Morgan yelled. He grabbed the handle._

_ "No, no, no!" Reid cried, locking the door."Believe me, get back."_

_ "What's wrong?" Morgan pulled on the door, but it wouldn't budge. "Reid, open the door!"_

_ Reid looked up and met his eyes. "I'm sorry." He whispered. He looked back at the broken vial and Morgan saw it too. He glanced back at his younger colleague, his eyes reddening. Reid met his gaze, not wanting Morgan to know how scared he was. How had he messed up so badly?_

Reid couldn't keep his eyes open any longer. He didn't want to see Tobias again, especially with his skeleton cuddling him in the most disturbing embrace Reid had ever seen. His mind started to drift away back into the abyss. But instead of darkness, he was surrounded by books. Thousands and thousands of books stacked on shelves rising up to the high ceiling. He was sitting at a wooden table. There were a few people milling around the shelves, all were blurry, except for the figure in front of him.

"M-maeve?" Reid asked. Was it really her? He had only seen her once, but he had dreamed about her night after night following her death. She nodded, her reddish curls bouncing around her face which held a radiant expression that brightened Reid's soul.

"Spence. . ." She tried to reach for his hands, which were resting on the table, but drew back. She smiled at him sadly. "It's great to see you again."

"I can't believe it's you. I thought you were dead." Reid said he wanted to run around the table and wrap his arms around her and kiss her and tell her that he loved her. But he couldn't. He slapped his pockets and felt something inside his left one. He pulled out a small triangle and stared at it for a minute, then cracked a grin. "Here, " He said, placing it in front of Maeve. "This is for you."

Maeve looked down on it with a sad smile. "A Penrose Triangle?" She said.

"I told you I built one." Reid said. "Now I'm giving it to you."

Maeve touched the tip with her pointer finger. "Every Penrose triangle has it's thorns." She looked up at Spencer, her eyes brimming with tears. "You can't build it." She gave a tearful grin. Why was she so sad? "It's an impossible physical structure."

"Not when I'm with you. When I'm with you I can do anything." Reid said, his own eyes reddening and his nose prickling as tears threatened to fall. He brushed them away impatiently. "Nothing's impossible when I have you." His voice broke and he realized he wasn't talking about the triangle anymore. He was talking about the life he could have had with Maeve. If it hadn't been for Diane, he could have had a wonderful life with Maeve. He could have married her, had extremely gifted children, settled down with his family, grown old and died with his dream girl. And that had all been taken away with one bullet. One stupid little bullet.

Maeve shook her head. "You don't have me." She sniffed. "I'm dead, Spence."

Spencer shook his head. "Then why are you here? You're dead but You're right in front of me. Am I dead too?" Maeve shook her head. "Then leave me alone, Maeve, and stop torturing me! Just go!"

Maeve looked shocked. She nodded and stood. "I love you, Spence."

Spencer's eyes widened as he was thrust back into the blackness. "No! Wait! Maeve!" He yelled. He sobbed. "Maeve! Please! I'm sorry!" Spencer cried silently and whispered, "I love you, too"


	6. Home for the Holidays

Morgan and Garcia sat at the window, watching the city of Washington D.C. Garcia was crying softly and Morgan was rubbing her back comfortingly. Her head rested on his shoulder. "Where is he, Morgan? Where is he?"

"I don't know, Mama." Morgan said, staring down at the riddle. "This is insane. What is this supposed to mean?"

"Derek, look!" Garcia cried. Morgan snapped his head up and saw that it was starting to snow. White flurries floated down from the sky onto the city. Onto wherever Reid was. It was beautiful. The stars shone brightly in the sky over the snow covered Washington D.C.

Tears filled Morgan's eyes. It was Christmas eve and Reid was out there dying in the cold and snow. "Reid needs to see this." Garcia whispered. "He needs to be here with us watching the snow fall, drinking his eleventh coffee while we all drink hot chocolate. Exchanging gifts with us and getting an awkward kiss under the mistletoe. This isn't fair!"

"I know, baby girl. It isn't fair." Morgan looked down at the riddle again.

"Let me see it." Garcia said, taking the piece of paper from him. He glared at it for a second, determined to find Reid so that he would be back with them for Christmas. "It doesn't rhyme." She said. Morgan let out a humorless chuckle.

"It doesn't." He said. "What do you make of it, Mama?"

"Why is the H in Hairspray capitalized?" Garcia asked.

"I – I didn't notice that." Morgan said. He took the paper back and realized Garcia was right. "I just figured it was hairspray like the actual spray." Morgan mimed spraying hairspray around his head.

"Hairspray. . . I've heard of that. It's a musical. About a pudgy dancer." Garcia said, getting excited.

"Up from opening Hairspray. Opening number?" Morgan asked, not allowing himself to get hopeful. Garcia pulled out her laptop and typed quickly.

"Good Morning Baltimore." She said. "Baltimore. A location pertaining to Baltimore. And that's in Maryland so Christmasy queen, that's referring to Maryland."

"I don't understand that clue." Morgan said.

"Well, Christmasy, that's referring to the greeting Merry Christmas. Merry. Mary. The state named after a queen that isn't Elizabeth. Mary." Garcia said.

"But it says that the house is named after her." Morgan countered. "So Maryland house."

"Maryland house, up from Baltimore. North of Baltimore. Maryland house, North of Baltimore." Garcia muttered as she typed furiously. "Morgan! I found it! I found it! I found it! It's two hours away from here on I-95. A rest stop called Maryland House."

Morgan stood so quickly Garcia almost fell out of her chair. "Hotch!" He shouted at the top of his lungs. Seconds later, Hotch was bolting out of his office and the team had reached the bullpen and was looking at Morgan with confusion. "Garcia got a location."

"How?" Blake asked, looking hopeful and relieved just like the rest of the team.

"The riddle." Garcia. "It's Maryland House on the I-95. Two hours away from D.C."

Hotch was about to say something but Garcia cried, "Waste no time with questions, boss man just go find my Boy Wonder!"

Morgan was the first to reach the black SUV in front of the building and jumped in the driver's seat. He hardly waited for the rest of the team before he sped off towards I-95.

Jason Gideon was driving through Maryland on the I-95 when he noticed the gas getting low. He pulled into the first rest stop he saw and got out to fill up his car. It was cold and had started to snow hours earlier. Gideon suddenly noticed the chill and crossed his arms over his heavy jacket. Gideon had started to feel bored with this lifestyle. Always just driving. Not knowing where he was going, not knowing when he would get there. He had missed the team a lot. He missed his protégé. He missed Reid. Gideon had not been around but he had been keeping tabs on his 2008, JJ had a son named Henry, naming Reid and Garcia as godparents. In 2009, Reid had been exposed to a deadly strain of anthrax then found the cure. That was his Reid. Gideon had been replaced by David Rossi, an old profiler who was famous in the BAU's book. Gideon was glad they had moved on. He hoped they still remembered him. Also in 2009, Hotch had been stabbed almost to death by a psychopath named George Foyet and found the same day Reid was shot in the leg. Later that year, Foyet had killed Haley. Gideon remembered Haley. She had wanted to name Jack after him. Prentiss had 'died' and then came back, then left again to join Interpol and was replaced by Alex Blake. Earlier in the present year, Reid had tried to help a girl by trying to save her from her stalker or something.

Gideon finished filling up his car and walked into the diner as a very familiar SUV and an ambulance pulled up outside, sirens blaring. _Well, speak of the devil._ Gideon thought. It was the team and Garcia. Maybe he had thought about them so much, they showed up, like Beetlejuice. Gideon blinked to make sure it was really the team he had worked with. There was Garcia, glittery glasses with a mistletoe headband, sparkly as ever. She was the only one without as Kevlar FBI vest. Hotch had the same hard look on his face with eagle eyes that bored into everything with what looked like hatred, except when he sees his family. There was Morgan, his muscles bigger than ever and his arms crossed over his chest. JJ looked the same. Her blond hair was up in a ponytail and she had an expression of worry mingled with fear and hope on her face. There were two members that Gideon didn't recognize. They must have been David Rossi and Alex Blake. David Rossi was an aging man with a gray beard and mustache with the same colored hair. He certainly looked Italian. He was wearing a glare that looked ever present just like Hotch's. Blake had brown curly hair that fell shoulder length around her face and an expression that looked amused even when she was mad.

But where was Reid? Gideon would have known if he left the BAU. And if whatever they were doing on FBI business- that part was obvious by the fact that they had their guns and vests- was so important they brought along Garcia, then why wouldn't Reid come too? Unless he was in trouble and the team was saving him. _Why is it always Reid?_ Gideon thought. _Why does he receive such shit? Because it's easy to hurt him? Poor Reid. And I abandoned him. I should be rescuing him with them. No, not anymore. I am not in the FBI anymore._

Hotch didn't notice Gideon as he walked up to the counter where his old friend was standing. He held up his badge to the woman behind it. "Hello, I'm SSA-

"Aaron Hotchner." Gideon finished. Hotch turned to him with a frown, then his eyes widened with recognition. He clutched the counter as if he was afraid he would fall over.

"Jason?" Hotch asked, astonished. Morgan had walked up to join him and see what was going on.

"Gideon?" Morgan was equally surprised. "What are you doing here?"

"I just stopped in to fill up my car. Why are you here?" Gideon said.

Suddenly, Garcia shrieked, "Gideon!" and ran forward to throw her arms around him. "Why did you leave, Gideon? We missed you! Reid worried his head off about you! We all did!" She let go of him and smacked him in the arm, much like she had with Hotch.

Gideon held his arm and turned to Hotch. "Where is Spencer?" He asked firmly.

"Hopefully, he's here." Hotch answered.

The girl at the counter had been watching them, confused, but spoke up. "We don't have anyone named 'Spencer' on staff." She said tersely.

"What's behind this establishment?" Gideon asked.

"Nothing. Just barren land and some ditches and stuff." She said.

"Mind if we take a look?" Gideon didn't say it as a question. They were going to go check it out no matter what she said.

"Gideon, you're not in the FBI anymore." Hotch said in his commanding voice.

"Let's not waste time arguing; you know I'm going anyway." Gideon said, pushing past Hotch to reach the back door.

Snow covered the ground and the earth was not flat anyway. There were shallow holes littering the land all around them.

"Reid!" Morgan shouted as he dashed out and whirled around.

"Spencer!" Gideon cried. He strained his ears and heard something. It was extremely quiet and everyone around him was yelling. "SHH!" Gideon yelled, holding up his hand. Everyone immediately silenced. They could all hear the faint whimper coming from a snow covered ditch twenty feet away from them.

Reid was awoken to cold. His entire body was cold and all he could see was white. He was buried under two inches of snow. Ice cold snow covered his slightly warm body and Tobias' chilly corpse. He tried to stare up at the night sky that would be littered with stars but he couldn't anything. Was it Christmas Eve? Why hadn't the team found him yet?

Reid all of a sudden realized what had woken him. It wasn't the cold, though it was excruciating. No, it was voices. Jenny had left a couple of hours earlier and it was her voice anyway. It was Morgan's voice and . . . who was that? Gideon? It couldn't be. But it was. Reid may not have had perfect pitch, but he could never forget the voice of the man who had been like a father to him. Gideon, Morgan, Hotch, JJ, Blake, Garcia, and Rossi were all there, calling his name. He had to let them know where he was. He was buried under snow and they couldn't see him. He tried to call out. He wanted to yell, "Gideon? Morgan? I'm here! Help!" But all that came out was a weak whimper of pain. They would hear it. They would have to hear it.

Gideon jumped into the ditch and gently brushed the snow off of Reid's face and his heart broke when he saw how pale he was and how much pain he was in. His eyes were barely open, but he saw Gideon's familiar face looking down on him with relief but also worry. Gideon. He had missed him so much.

"G-Gideon." Reid breathed. He reached up a shaky, snow covered hand and grabbed Gideon's hand. It was what kept him on earth. He had to hold on. If he let go, he would be thrown back into the blackness and never return. Hotch was materializing next to Gideon, dropping down and brushing snow off of Reid's stomach to apply pressure to his wound. Morgan was brushing snow off the figure next to Reid. Gideon felt sick. There was his former protégé lying in a pool of his own blood being cuddled by a skeleton. A real human skeleton had its arm around his shoulders. Who was it?

"Hotch," Morgan said, looking mad. "I think we found Tobias Hankel." Tobias Hankel? Why would someone dig up Tobais' corpse and put it with Reid like that? Who was that sick?

Morgan stood calmly, with rage bubbling beneath the surface, carefully lifting the skeleton as if it was glass. He walked a couple feet then exploded. Screaming in anger, Morgan drop kicked the skeleton ten feet and it smashed as it hit the ground. Morgan ran up to it and stomped on it, yelling curses at the dead serial killer that had caused his best friend so much pain. If Gideon hadn't been holding Reid's hand, he would have done the same.

The team let Morgan carry on until he heard a soft, weak voice that would have been missed if Morgan had not stopped to catch his breath. His eyes widened and he ran over to his fallen brother, kneeling down beside him.

"Reid? Pretty boy?" Morgan's voice had become gentle and full of compassion, an amazing contrast to what it had sounded like only seconds earlier. Gideon and Hotch let go of Reid as Morgan held his friend and pushed his hair back. JJ had gone to get the paramedics as soon as Gideon had found Reid and she returned now with two men and a gurney following close behind. Morgan reluctantly let go of Reid when the paramedics pried the younger man out of his arms.

Morgan stood, snow clinging to his knees and Garcia rushed over to him, wrapping her arms around him. Morgan hugged her back. Reid was home with them for the holidays. He was safe with them again.

But it wasn't over yet.


	7. Miracle on Quantico Street

Reid was safe with them. They couldn't believe it. Morgan just hoped he would get Jenny first so that he could beat the living crap out of her. He sat worried, relieved and fuming in the waiting room with Garcia on one side and Gideon on the other. Morgan just couldn't bring himself to acknowledge that Gideon was there with them. That he had actually helped save Reid.

Hotch sat nervously wringing his still bloody hands, staring at Gideon as if he couldn't believe it either. Gideon had simply walked out of their lives and they had never heard from him again. They had almost convinced themselves that he had never really existed in the first place. If they did concede his existence, then that would mean they had a dear friend they cared about who had left them without a goodbye and never bothered to tell them he was okay.

Garcia was gaping at Gideon. She had considered him part of her family. She had held his hand in mortal fear as they watched their beloved Reid die at the hands of a sadist in a psychotic break and Garcia could have sworn she saw a tear run down Gideon's cheek. It could have been her imagination, but Garcia liked to think he at least cared about Reid, because he obviously didn't care enough about the rest of the team to call once in a while. She remembered the day Reid had found the letter from Gideon.

_Garcia was sitting in her lair playing world of war craft when Reid burst in, scaring her so much that she dropped her keyboard with a smash. "Reid!" She scolded and turned to him, but stopped when she saw his face; it was tear streaked and his eyes were puffy and red. His hair was messed up as if he had been running his hand through it repeatedly in distress, which he probably had. "Baby, what's wrong?" She asked gently, touching his arm. _

"_G-Gideon's not c-coming back!" Reid sobbed. _

"_What are you talking about? What do you mean he's not coming back? He has to come back!"She cried. How could he do that? He wouldn't just abandon them. And he wouldn't leave Reid like that. No, he was coming back. He was. She had to tell herself that. Gideon wasn't leaving them. He was not. _

"_He's not coming back!" Reid repeated firmly. Garcia noticed the letter in Reid's hand. It was tear stained and crumpled as a result of his clutching it so tight. She reached for it, but Reid pulled away. He looked down on it and sniffed, brushing away his tears impatiently. _

"_Look at me," He whispered glumly. "crying. I am crying over some coworker."_

"_Reid, Jason Gideon is so much more than a coworker. He was like the father you never had. And I know you meant a lot to him." Garcia murmured, pulling Reid into a warm, comforting embrace. He sobbed into her fuzzy, sparkly blue sweater as she stroked his hair. Gideon had left him. Garcia understood that Reid had been looking for a surrogate father figure ever since his father had left him and his mother. And now, Gideon was gone. Garcia didn't know how Reid would deal with this._

"_Why do they always leave me?" Reid sniveled. He choked on his sobs and started to cough violently. Garcia pulled back quickly. _

"_You okay, baby?" She asked worriedly. Reid shook his head as he stopped coughing._

"_Why does everyone leave me?" He mumbled. Garcia knew he was talking about his father figures. "Do they hate me? Is it because I'm annoying? Is my intelligence threatening? Am I just-"_

"_Reid, stop right there." Garcia said firmly. Reid looked up at her with big, brown eyes. His maturity and strength had been stripped away only to be replaced with vulnerability and misery. He was no more than a child now. "Nobody hates you and we are never going to leave you." Garcia ran her hand through his hair lovingly. "Gideon didn't hate you and I seriously doubt your father could ever hate a son like you."_

_Reid sniffed. "Then why did they leave?" He whimpered. _

_Garcia shook her head. "I don't know, Boy Wonder." She said softly. _

_Reid drew in a shaky breath. "_The final test of a leader is that he leaves behind him in other men the conviction and will to carry on."  
_ Garcia stared at him. "Walter Lippmann." Reid said by way of explanation. Garcia simply nodded in mock understanding. That quote did remind her of Gideon. He had left the team and they would have to pick up the pieces. Reid would be stronger after this. _

_She stood there for a few moments while Reid sniffled and hiccupped. When he finally silenced, Garcia tried to think of a way to make him feel better. All of a sudden, she clapped her hands in glee, making Reid snap his head up, confused. "Let's go get drunk." Garcia said, grabbing Reid by the sleeve and pulling him out the door of her lair. She didn't miss the small smile that graced his features for a split second. Garcia smiled herself. Maybe Reid would be alright. _

Garcia grinned at the memory. Gideon noticed this. "What?" He asked.

"Just thinking about when you left us. Reid was bawling his eyes out." Garcia said with a glare. Gideon looked guilty. He shifted uncomfortably in his seat, feeling six pairs of eyes on him. "How could you do that?" Garcia asked with hurt in her voice.

"He cried?" Gideon asked quietly.

"He cried. He thought you hated him." Garcia said, her voice growing uncharacteristically angry. "He asked me why they always leave him."

"I'm sorry." Gideon said, and he was genuine about it. He met Garcia's contemptuous gaze and she decided to stop berating him. . . For now.

Gideon stared across the waiting room at Hotch. Hotch stared back, his mind not in the emergency room. "Your hands, Aaron." Gideon said.

Hotch stopped wringing his hands and kept them raised, clasped together. "What?" He said distractedly.

"You might want to wash that blood off your hands." Gideon pointed at Hotch's hands. Hotch looked down and turned green. He nodded quietly and rushed off to the bathroom.

Morgan had been leaning forward with his elbows on his knees but now he sat up and faced Gideon. He placed a strong hand on the older man's shoulder. "We missed you, man."

Gideon gave his usual half smile. "I missed you guys, too." He said softly. Morgan smiled back. Rossi and Blake looked at each other uncomfortably. They couldn't do anything but watch this exchange. They didn't know Gideon, but it was clear that the rest of the team cared about him. After a long silence filled with the sounds of the nurses' shoes on the white tiled floor, Gideon spoke again. "So, what happened? Why was Reid there?"

Blake seemed detached from the concern of her teammates for Reid as she explained. "Reid was shot in his apartment two days ago. He was kidnapped by a woman who is obsessed with him for some reason. She hates him. She said that he ruined her life. We don't know how. She gave us a riddle and Garcia figured it out. I just hope we got to him in time." They all considered that last sentence. Had he been rescued in time? He was covered in snow and was lying in a pool of his own blood. The sight still made Garcia cringe when she thought about it.

"He must have been so cold." Garcia whispered.

Hotch suddenly returned and sat in his previous seat. His hands were red, looking as if he had scrubbed them vigorously under scalding hot water. He probably had.

A doctor walked out and said, "Family of Spencer Reid?"

"Dr. Spencer Reid." Gideon automatically corrected. Hotch smirked as he stood up and walked over to the doctor to shake his hand.

"I'm Aaron Hotchner with the FBI. I'm his emergency contact. This is his team- and Jason Gideon." Hotch gestured to the other people in the emergency room. JJ gave a shy wave that she had picked up from Reid. "How is he?" Hotch asked.

"He is extremely lucky you found him when you did. One more hour and he would have been beyond our help. We've managed to remove the bullet and stitched up the wound; luckily, it missed his aorta, so he was bleeding but very slowly. He has gone into stage four hypovolemic shock. He's had a blood transfusion but the symptoms should remain for a couple more hours." The doctor said, staring at his clipboard.

"I did not understand that." Garcia said. "Can you explain it like I'm six years old?"

The team chuckled at her, but she was serious. After all that had happened, her brain had shut down completely and she didn't want to turn it back on.

The doctor looked dubious but sighed and said, "His, uh, booboo is healed but he's going to be sweaty and sleepy for a while."

Garcia nodded. "Okay, I got it. Can we see him?"

"You haven't given him any narcotics have you?" Gideon asked. Hotch's eyes widened. Reid wouldn't want those he would fight them.

The doctor shook his head. "No, but we're prepared to do so to assuage his pain if the need arises."

"Don't" Hotch and Gideon said simultaneously. Hotch spoke again before Gideon could, "He will refuse them; he has an unnerving . . . history with narcotics."

The doctor nodded with understanding. "I see. If you would like to see him now-"

"Yes please!" Garcia cried happily. Morgan chuckled as he followed the doctor with Garcia into Reid's room. Well at least he had his own room so that Garcia could smother him in peace. They all held their breath as Hotch grabbed the doorknob and they cautiously stepped inside.

Reid was lying in the bed, staring at the ceiling. He was pale and his eyes were wide, staring at nothing. One arm was hanging off the bed and the other rested on his bandaged stomach. It was scary to see him like this, but if anyone could snap him out of it, it was Garcia.

"Reid!" She squealed, running over to him and scaring him out of his daze. She pulled him up to her, ignoring his yelp of pain, or maybe not hearing it. Her Christmas sweater smothered him and her arms were tightly wrapped around his shoulders. His arms flung out blindly and finally patted her back in an effort to get her to let go of him.

"Garcia," Morgan said, stepping forward to put a hand on her shoulder. "You're suffocating him. Lay off, mama."

Garcia gasped and drew back, her hand in Reid's chestnut curls and her other hand stroking his cheek. "Sorry, baby." She said, but Reid was staring at the door where Jason Gideon was standing, is fists shoved in his pockets and each wrinkle on his face accentuated with relief and guilt.

"Gideon." Reid breathed. "It's- It's really you. I th-thought I dreamed you."

Gideon walked forward, shaking his head. Garcia moved aside and Gideon stood next to Reid, who looked up at him in what looked like fear. In truth, he was ecstatic. He had missed Gideon so much and understood why he had left the BAU. Reid had forgiven Gideon long before the rest of the team had and now he looked up at his old father figure and realized Gideon had tears in his eyes.

"I'm sorry, Spencer. I'm so sorry." Gideon whispered.

Reid's skinny arms were around his neck and they both sobbed. "I forgive you, Gideon. It's fine."

The team watched with tears in their eyes. Garcia wound her arms around Morgan's waist and said, "It's a Christmas miracle!"

Morgan looked at his watch. Two thirty in the morning. It had been Christmas for two and a half hours. He walked up to Reid's bed. He ruffled his hair as Reid and Gideon broke away and said, "Merry Christmas, Pretty Boy."


	8. Preview

This is the last chapter but it will be continued in a story with a less Christmasy title. Jenny is still out there. Reid is still recovering. How will they find and apprehend her? How will Reid deal with the safety of his home violated? Here is a preview to the sequel:

_The lights of a red rusted pick up practically blinded Reid, who was in the passenger's seat. He squinted through the radiance of the headlights and saw Jenny sitting in the driver's seat of the truck that was heading right at them. Her eyes grew wide as she saw that Hotch was driving and Morgan and Gideon were in the back. She slammed on the breaks, not wanting to hurt anyone but Reid, but was too late._

_ Almost in slow motion, the two cars banged against each other. Reid was pushed forward, then forced back as the windshield broke into thousands of tiny pieces that floated through the air and pierced Reid's skin. His head was slammed back against the headrest and the next thing he remembered was Morgan yelling.  
"Reid, are you alright? Reid? Reid!" Reid groaned and assessed his situation. He felt okay, until he tried to sit up._

_ "I'm okay!" He lied, yelling in the direction of Morgan's voice. "What about you?"_

_ "I'm fine." Morgan shouted. "Hotch? Gideon? You guys okay?"_

_ There was no answer. "Hotch? Gideon?" Reid yelled, trying to sit up again and failing. He realized someone had pulled him out of the car. He turned his head to the right and saw Jenny unconscious. Morgan was sitting next to her, as if to make sure she didn't take off. _

_ "Reid?" Morgan asked, glaring at him as if he didn't believe he was alright. _

_ "Morgan? Reid? Hotch?" Gideon's voice came from a few feet away from Reid. Reid turned his head to the other side. Gideon was sitting up._

_ "Gideon, you okay?" Morgan asked as the older former colleague got up and stumbled over to where Morgan and Jenny were._

_ "Yeah, where's Hotch?" Gideon asked. At that time they heard a groan coming from their car. Morgan's eyes widened as he realized no one had gotten Hotch out of the car. He was still in there. _


End file.
